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The groundhogs have come out of the burrow where they have spent the winter months. A very beautiful scene of these animals are their kisses, sometimes with great passion and other times getting up, as can be seen in these photographs in La Vanguardia’s Readers’ Photos.
I was able to capture these images this weekend in the Tossa d’Alp area, which, at 2535 meters of altitude, is known as the Pedró dels Quatre Batlles, since four municipalities meet at the top: Alp, Urús, Das (La Cerdanya) and Bagà (Berguedà).
Groundhogs are large rodents, the heaviest members of the squirrel family, with enlarged claws well adapted for digging tunnels where they winter for about seven months.
Groundhogs prefer an open habitat that allows them to spot predators from a distance and run for cover. They live in a family structure. A family can have between 10 and 20 offspring, which live with their parents until maturity.
Groundhogs enjoy socializing with each other. Regardless of age, they groom each other and greet each other by rubbing noses.
Of course, although they are sociable with other members of the family, they tend to be very ferocious against predators and other strangers that invade their territory.
